TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The State government will primarily focus on the safety of tourists, while participating at the London World Travel Mart (WTM) starting Monday, besides promoting various round-the-year attractions within the State. This is appears to be a damage-control exercise in the backdrop of cases reported involving foreign nationals.
A delegation of stakeholders led by Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar will also highlight upcoming events and festivals such as Carnival, Grape Escapade, Heritage Festival, Christmas and New Year celebrations.
With the death of three Russian tourists, who drowned after the boat in which they were cruising along with seven others capsized off Canaguinim coast, the Tourism department is all set to answer questions on safety.
“Questions related to safety will come up. We will give a clear picture to them that safety in Goa is not compromised. This incident (referring to drowning deaths) was a case of negligence (by the water sports operator),” Director Ameya Abhyankar, who will also attend the four-day event told Herald, in a bid to reach out to international media after the flak that it received recently.
The Mart, which is the second biggest after ITM Berlin, will see participation from various countries. Abhyankar insisted Goa’s participation at the event will help promote the brand, while deriding the word junket.
“Junket is derogatory term. WTM is a serious affair where events would begin from 10 am and go on till late evening. We will have one-to-one interactions with various stakeholders and tourists. Promotion events world-wide are essential in the wake of several competitors around us,” he said responding to question about previous foreign junkets which evoked controversy.
“We see that Kerala has launched its spice route heritage tourism in 31 countries; Maharashtra, Gujarat and countries such as Sri Lanka and Vietnam are pitching (their products) very aggressively…We get around half-a-million tourists and want to increase the numbers. If we are not represented, then we would be questioned about the declining inflow of tourists,” he claimed.
The stall theme of Goa Tourism will depict Goa’s architectural style in terms of colours and design, adhere to guidelines set by Chlorophyll. Branding panels showcasing different aspects of Goa will form part of the design along with a replica of a popular landmark in Goa that will be installed in the centre of the stall.
Goa will be branded as a ‘365-day attractive vacation destination.’ But more specifically, the focus will be on different facets of tourism including weddings in Goa, heritage and cultural tourism, wellness and medical tourism, adventure sports & activities, hinterland and nature besides the forthcoming events and festivals.
